Bittersweet GinRan Oneshot
by Kitti420
Summary: Stopping them would be difficult, if not impossible, but I have to try. I have to see him, at least one more time.


Bittersweet: GinRan One-Shot

Inspiration: "Bittersweet" by Within Temptation

WARNING: If you do not read ahead in the manga, or read it at all, or have not read past chapter 410, this will be sort of spoilers for you!

'I have to hurry!' I urged internally, racing through the Senkaimon as fast as my injured body and weakening legs could manage. I had to stop them before any innocent lives were taken. Finding the two of them shouldn't be too hard; I'd just have to follow the immense riatsu. Stopping them would be difficult, if not impossible, but I have to try. I have to see _him_, at least one more time.

After what seemed like an eternity, I had broken into the bright daylight outside the Senkaimon. Karakura Town looked to peaceful. But it was in grave danger, as was every citizen trapped within its confines. My comrades were stuck back in Hueco Mundo, but I managed to escape and keep track of Aizen. He could not be allowed to use Karakura Town to create the Royal Key.

My legs trembled and I found myself panting as I roamed around the town. I was beginning to get weaker as the moments passed; I had been horribly injured while in Hueco Mundo, and I gave myself no time to recover completely before I chased after Aizen and Gin.

Soon, I felt my body become heavy, as if gravity were trying to flatten me. Breathing became a rather difficult task. They were close. Really close. I stumbled around the corner of a building to see Aizen approaching me. It seems he'd already sniffed me out. He sent me an arrogant smirk of sorts. He must have seen how much it took out of me just to stand in his presence.

"Rangiku… such a pleasant surprise," he greeted, his voice flowing like velvet from his sweetly smiling lips. As he slowly approached, I found it harder and harder to even keep my eyes open. The pressure of his riatsu was almost too much to bear. I began to regret coming to Karakura Town unprepared.

"Why are you here, Rangiku?" He asked casually, as if trying to keep up a normal conversation. He had ceased his walking, just standing merely ten feet from me. I was panting so hard from his riatsu. It bore down on my weak body like a ton of steel, never letting up until I were as flat as paper.

It took me a moment to gather the strength to even speak, and it took all the force of my mind to keep myself from kneeling before the God-like figure. "I…. I came to stop you…" I stammered, my lungs feeling as if they'd implode at any second. Aizen gave a deep, guttural chuckle.

"Do you honestly believe that you alone can stop me? That someone as weak as you could even stand a chance against me?" He questioned me, his warm and inviting, yet bitter cold eyes boring into my very soul. His voice held a tone of interest and amazement at my remark. Maybe he thought it was idiotic of me to say such a thing; or that I was brave to attempt to stand against him.

As I opened my mouth to speak again, all I found I could do was gasp. My lungs were acting as if they were about to just up and quit on me. Just as before, Aizen chuckled, stepping a little closer. "What's the matter? Is talking to me difficult?" He taunted.

With each step closer, I felt my body beginning to slowly buckle. I closed my eyes for a second, nearly letting the pressure consume me and force me down.

"Captain Aizen…"

My eyes shot open at that very familiar voice. I felt a gasp catch in my throat when I saw him. It was Gin. He wore that trademark smile of his, as if nothing had changed at all. He came up beside Aizen, looking at me. Or, I could assume he was looking at me, since he hardly ever opened his eyes, yet he was facing me.

"Sorry about my old friend here," Gin murmured almost jokingly. "I'll take care of her."

"Yes, you do that. We've plenty of time. Go have a little chat with her," Aizen replied, still smiling at me, sending chills down my spine. My eyes shifted to Gin as the silver-haired man nodded in response to Aizen's order.

As if it had never existed, the pressing bearing down on me was lifted, and I could breathe again. Just as I found relief in that, Gin dashed at me, causing me to jump backwards with my sword held protectively in front of me. He backed off for a moment and I turned to run, knowing he'd follow.

I chose a tall building far from Aizen to make a near crash landing. My body was still growing weaker; my legs could barely support me as I stood. Gin landed beside me, his smile fading. "You're barely able to stand. Why did you come here, Rangiku?" Gin questioned, his tone solemn and almost upset.

I looked at him as if he were an idiot. He must be, if he did not know my reason for following him. My true reason. "Because of you…. I wanted to ask you something." Gin looked at me, his eyes opening slightly. Did he still care?

A moment of silence passed as we stared at each other. I was still recollecting my breath from earlier. "Gin… why are you following Aizen? Why did you betray Izuru's trust…?" I inquired softly. Gin let out a quiet sigh. I gazed at him, my eyes never wanting to leave that face of which I'd grown so fond.

"Is it really Izuru whose trust I have betrayed?" He replied almost coldly. I flinched from his sudden change in tone. I knew I could not fool him. I began to back up, little baby steps at a time, as he approached me. His face held a serious expression; I wasn't sure if he would kill me right then and there, as Aizen wished.

Gin kept coming closer, and I stopped backing away from him. He had opened his pale blue eyes as he stared me down, stopping just a foot away. I wanted so badly to run into his arms and never let him go, but I knew that would be inappropriate now. Too much time had passed since we'd seen each other last.

"Rangiku…" Gin addressed me with such passion, just as he used to before his betrayal of the Soul Society. It kind of caught me off guard. He showed no menace in his eyes and held no threat in his voice. I nodded slowly in acknowledgement. "What is the real reason you came here?"

I figured he'd ask. It wasn't too hard to figure out, really. My body seemed as if it could fail me at any given time, yet I still followed him. I put myself in risk of death for him, just to see him. "I came here… because…. I wanted to see you, Gin," I responded truthfully, a small smile dancing on my lips.

Gin began to chuckle. My smile faded quickly, feeling insulted. "You really are foolish, Rangiku… you're so weak right now… you should be resting," he sighed. He stared right into my eyes; I could tell he meant well, that he still cared about me. "It's dangerous for you to be here…"

I nodded and looked to the ground, as a child would after being apprehended by a parent for doing something wrong. "I know… but… I missed you," I whispered. My eyes began to fill with tears, remembering the day Gin had left with Aizen and Tousen. It nearly killed me to see him go, not knowing if I'd ever see him again. No- it did kill me. My heart crumbled and turned to dust as I watched him vanish within the Garganta beside the other two traitors and the Menos.

"Why…. Why did you leave me…?" I began to sob quietly, forcing my eyes to stay open as they welled up with tears before overflowing. "I missed you so much… I was so alone… I dreamt of you every night… imagining that you held me in your arms so I could actually fall asleep… yet, that didn't even work half the time." Soon, the tears streaming down my face increased with my anger.

Gin only looked at me, his brow furrowing slightly. He took one step towards me and reached a hand out towards me, slowly. I shook my head and pushed his hand away, backing up just a tad more. He took another step closer and grabbed my arms, pulling me into his chest. I shoved against him, trying to break free from his strong grip. "L-let go of me…!" I ordered, my voice cracking as I continued to cry.

"Rangiku," Gin spoke softly, almost in a loving manner. He wrapped his arms around my trembling body a little tighter, rubbing my back. "I'm sorry that I had to leave… I felt horrible about leaving you… but it was something that I needed to do." As he spoke to me, I leaned against him, nuzzling my face into his white robes as I wept.

Gin continued to hold me as I shed my tears upon his chest, my arms wrapped tightly around him as if he'd vanish at any second. I missed his touch, his affection. My angry, seemingly endless tears began to slow to a stop as the silent moments elapsed. I could hear Gin's heart beating calmly as I hugged myself to him. In return, he rubbed my back a little more before pulling away.

"I know you'll probably never forgive me for leaving," Gin began. I let go of him so I could look up at his face. I bet my eyes were rimmed in red and my face was marred with dry tear streaks. "If it makes you feel any better… I never stopped missing you and loving you, Rangiku. Every day I would think of you, wishing I could have stayed, or brought you along. And I never did forget my promise to you that I made all those years ago."

A smile crossed my lips. I remembered the day he saved me from starvation, and the day he came to me, dressed in the standard Soul Reaper attire. He promised he'd make the world a better place, for me. "I never forgot about it either, Gin. I remember every day we spent together, all of our fun times that we had, as if they all happened yesterday," I replied.

Gin soon smiled at me. "That makes me very happy," he chuckled. I laughed a little as well, bringing my hand up to my lips for a moment. It felt as if nothing had happened, as if there was never a schism between us. Gin had stopped laughing as I continued to giggle, causing me to stop a few moments after.

Time passed slowly, if it even passed at all, as Gin and I stared at each other. All was silent, save for my heart pounding rather loudly in my ears. Gin slowly pulled me into his arms once more as he leaned down to press his lips against mine. I put my arms around his neck and kissed back, my eyes closing instantly. Every time his lips pressed against mine, the butterflies in my stomach would go insane. My knees felt weak and I wrapped my arms just a little tighter around his neck, digging my fingers into his white robe. With every kiss he gave me, I gave two back, sweetly.

My eyes opened as Gin began to pull away. I threw in one last peck on his lips as I let go of his neck when his arms dropped from around my waist. He smiled down at me, a smile that I'd seen many times, when he was about to go do something potentially dangerous or stupid. The smile I wore on my face turned downward, wrinkles forming on my forehead as I gave him a worried look.

"I know this moment of ours was really short… but I have to go take care of something," he sighed. I shook my head in protest. I knew exactly what he was going to do. I knew how dangerous it would be, no matter how much stronger Gin had gotten while in Hueco Mundo. "Rangiku, I must-"

"No," I interrupted. "I won't let you… I can't let you go…" Once again, the tears invaded my eyes and spilled over their rims, sliding down my cheeks one drop at a time. Gin brought his hand up to cup my cheek, using his thumb to catch one of the runaway droplets. I leaned my face into his hand sadly. "Please don't go… don't leave me alone again..."

Gin stroked my cheek gently with his thumb as he leaned in to kiss my lips again. "I promise I'll be right back… I'll end it all quickly…" I could sense his uncertainty in his voice. Even he doubted he could actually kill Aizen. "I said I would keep my promise to you, and I will. Just wait for me right here, and I will come back for you soon, okay Rangiku?"

I knew that nothing I could say would change his mind. I only nodded once in response. He took his hand away from my cheek and slid it underneath my chin, lifting my head up a little. I leaned up to kiss his lips first, the tears multiplying and soaking my cheeks again. Gin kissed back a few times before he pulled away.

"I need you to hide your riatsu as well as you can, to make Aizen believe I had killed you. Can you do that for me?" He asked. I wiped my eyes on my black sleeve and nodded again. "Good. Do that right now, before I leave."

I did as he had asked of me and slowly hid my riatsu until I was sure it was undetectable. "Alright… it's hidden," I spoke quietly. Gin nodded and kissed me once more before leaping off of the building to get back to Aizen. Slowly, I sat down, my back against the short wall of the rooftop, hugging my knees to my chest. "Please… don't die…"

As I sat in waiting, I kept my riatsu hidden perfectly, while also paying close attention to Gin's. If something were to happen to him, I would know, and I would be at his side in a heartbeat. It was difficult to keep hidden as my body protested against me doing so. I was slowly draining the little energy I had left.

Moments trickled by slowly, very agonizingly slowly. The only sounds I could hear were the wind whistling and my heart beating. With each passing second, I grew more and more worried for Gin. I monitored his riatsu levels very closely, checking for even the slightest fluctuation.

Suddenly, I felt Gin's riatsu fade. I jumped to my feet, a bit wobbly, and continued to keep my eye on his riatsu. It kept lowering slowly. He must have gotten badly injured. I took a deep breath before leaping off of the rooftop to go find him.

'I have to hurry!' I told myself as I ran just as fast as I had before. I could feel Gin's riatsu fading faster and faster. I turned a few corners, dodging some unconscious corpses on the ground and cars parked on the street. I could see some rubble upturned ahead of me, and a tall, white figure standing and turning towards me.

I gasped when I saw Aizen; he'd changed form from the last time I saw him. Now he had large, white wings, resembling that of a moth or butterfly. His riatsu had increased tenfold and even one hundred feet away I was overwhelmed by his power. My body slowed considerably, my legs shaking and my chest compressing as if I were being squeezed.

"So it seems you're still barely alive," Aizen chuckled. I glared at him as I continued to push my body forward towards him. Gin must be around here somewhere. I glanced around to my left and right, but I did not see him.

"Where is Gin?" I growled, standing several feet from Aizen. I was amazed that my body had not buckled under the pressure yet. I suppose my worry for Gin was the only energy fueling my body now.

"You're just a little too late, I'm afraid." Aizen displayed an almost apologetic smile as he turned to his side to reveal Gin's body on the ground behind him. I gasped and trudged over to him, falling to my knees at the sight of his fatal wounds.

Gin's entire right arm had been severed, and he had a deep, long gash across his chest, starting from his left shoulder and ending just above his right hip, and a stab wound in the center of his chest. His white robes were stained with his blood, and some of it trickled from his lips and down his chin and neck. His eyes were closed and his lips were parted slightly, as if he were asleep.

I fell and held myself over Gin's body, weeping. He was still alive, hanging on by a single thread it seemed. He opened his eyes just enough to look at mine. I could see his lips try and twitch themselves into his trademark grin, but to no avail. I held his face in my hand, stroking his cheek with my thumb. "Gin, no… you can't leave me like this…"

Gin nodded once, pitifully, against my hand cupping his cheek. His lips began to part a little more, and I could hear his labored gasps for air. "Ran…giku… I'm sorry…." He whispered, barely able to even speak. His eyes began to close shut, and his body grew limp. His head fell against my hand and his heart stopped beating.

I began to cry hysterically, hugging Gin's body against my chest. I could feel his blood soaking through my own clothes; it was already growing cold. Salty tears fell down my face and dripped off of my chin onto Gin's almost serene face as I lay his body back down. Slowly, I struggled to get to my feet and turned to face Aizen.

"Oh, you wish to take revenge upon me for Gin's death?" Aizen chuckled, a little amused. He advanced towards me, his long, slender legs taking wide steps to shorten the distance between us. I stood in front of Gin's corpse, glaring at Aizen through my ocean of tears. I wanted to at least attempt to hurt Aizen for what he did to Gin.

With anger driving my actions, I grabbed my Zanpakuto and dashed at the white-winged God. Time seemed to stand still as I closed the distance between his body and mine. Though, something seemed off. My sword was in my hand, unsheathed, but it had not touched Aizen's body. I was stopped by a strong, painful force against my chest, just inches from hitting Aizen's body if I were to have kept running at him.

I looked down at my chest. There, buried half-way into my bosom, was his gleaming sword. Blood began to pool in my mouth and slowly dribble down my lips and chin as I looked up at him. His black and gold eyes held no remorse, no regret, no joy, or sorrow. They were completely cold and hollow. But, despite the look in his eyes, he was chuckling.

"You could still be alive and well, if only for a little longer, if you had not followed me here," he began. His words reached my ears slower than usual, as if time were slowing down again. My vision was becoming blurry and dark, and my body was growing cold.

"Think of this as an act of kindness from me. I could have let you live, but I felt it would be more appropriate to end your suffering and sorrow from having to watch your lover die," Aizen remarked coldly. With a thrust, he stabbed the sword completely through my body, and then tugged it out. The force of his tugging caused my body to fall backwards onto the rubble and pavement.

I hit the ground hard on my back, knocking out what little oxygen I had left in my lungs. Aizen stood in place, looking down at me with those careless eyes of his. Not wanting Aizen's face to be my last sight, I turned my head to my right to see Gin. A tear escaped my eye and slid down the side of my face as I felt my body shut down. With my last little sliver of strength, I reached towards Gin and grasped his hand tightly in mine. Once I touched his skin, my vision went black, and everything became silent.


End file.
